Day 4: Kent 523, 1/1dec drew with Durham 446
A century from Ben Raine helped Durham to a draw and 14 points in their Rothesay County Championship Division Two match with Kent at Beckenham.
At one point Durham looked likely to have to follow on when they were reduced to 288 for nine. Ekansh Singh and Matt Milnes both took three wickets, while James Taylor bowled Ben Stokes for 45.
However, a last wicket of stand of 158 between Raine and Callum Parkinson, who was unbeaten on 54, killed any lingering hopes of a home win.
Raine, Durham’s top scorer, was finally dismissed for 106 and he then donned the wicket-keeper’s gloves and caught Ben Dawkins off Graham Clark as Kent’s second innings lasted ended on one for one after 1.3 overs.
The draw always looked the likeliest outcome, after a leaky cover meant no play was possible on day three, but play started on time and David Bedingham had added only two to his overnight score before he edged Milnes to Tawanda Muyeye at second slip for 74.
Stokes was on 12 when he edged James Taylor, but a diving Keith Dudgeon couldn’t reel in the chance and he was dropped again, on 34, by wicket-keeper Chris Benjamin, when he edged Taylor down the leg side.
After Kasey Aldridge went for 36, edging Taylor to Muyeye, Stokes was bowled by Taylor off a bottom edge.
Kent’s hopes flickered in the final scheduled over before lunch, when Matthew Potts skied Ekansh Singh and was taken by Benjamin for 23, but they couldn’t take the final wicket in the extra eight overs and Durham were 322 for nine when lunch was taken.
Callum Parkinson hit his twin brother Matt for a couple of boundaries either side of the interval and Raine took two from Milnes to pass 50.
The last wicket duo batted for over an hour after the resumption and had just taken Durham past the follow on target when the players went off for rain.
An early tea was called, after which Raine dumped Parkinson for a six over square leg.
Durham’s previous record tenth-wicket stand against Kent was 109 (by Michael Foster and Steve Harmison at Canterbury in 1998) and with Kent unable to break the partnership, Dudgeon came on as a spinner and even Zak Crawley turned his arm over.
Raine took three from Ben Dawkins to reach his century and Parkinson hit the same bowler to bring up his second first class 50.
The innings was finally wrapped up when Matt Parkinson bowled Raine, who then donned the gloves for the visitors – and caught Dawkins for a duck off Clark. At this point Kent declared and the teams agreed on the draw.
Day 3
Rothesay County Championship – Day 3: Kent 523 v Durham 173/5. Kent lead by 350 runs.
Kent were left frustrated after overnight rain meant no play was possible on the third day of their Rothesay County Championship Division Two clash with early-season pace-setters Durham.
Chasing a third consecutive victory, Kent had hoped to press home the advantage built on Saturday, with Durham set to resume on 173 for five, still 350 runs behind the hosts.
Despite clear overhead conditions at Beckenham, moisture had seeped beneath the covers and onto the playing surface, resulting in a series of umpire inspections throughout the day while players and supporters waited patiently for conditions to improve.
Ben Stokes, one of Durham’s two overnight not-out batters, took advantage of the delay with an extensive early-morning net session, but that proved to be the only sighting of the England captain in the middle before play was officially abandoned for the day at 4.08pm with the ground bathed in sunshine.
Day 2
David Bedingham struck an unbeaten 72 as Durham were 173 for five against Kent, still trailing by 350, when rain forced an early end to day two of their Rothesay County Championship match at Beckenham.
Kent’s Ekansh Singh hit an unbeaten 66 to help Kent to 523 all out, after Durham started the second day with three wickets for four runs in the first two overs. However, Ekansh put on a century stand with Keith Dudgeon, to swing the momentum back in Kent’s favour.
Matthew Potts took six for 92 and claimed his 300th first-class wicket, but Matt Milnes and Ekansh took two wickets apiece to leave the Division Two leaders still 200 shy of the follow on at stumps. Milnes bowled Emilio Gay, leaving David Bedingham and Ben Stokes as the not out batters on 77 and 8 respectively.
Kent were 385 for four overnight, but Durham made a near-perfect start to the second day.
Raine struck in the first over, bowling Ben Dawkins, who couldn’t add to his overnight score of 180.
Potts then had Chris Benjamin caught by Kasey Aldridge at second slip for seven and Milnes went for four, caught by Alex Lees at third, before the hosts responded with a stand worth 108.
He profited by driving Callum Parkinson for a single to reach his fifty, but in the final over before lunch Durham broke the partnership when Dudgeon went for 44, top-edging Potts to Ollie Robinson, leaving Kent on 497-8.
James Taylor made 10 before skying Potts to David Bedingham, giving Callum Parkinson the chance to bowl at his twin Matt – who failed to score off 12 deliveries from his brother.
Ekansh dumped Callum Parkinson into stands for a six, before Matt Parkinson was the last man out, nicking Potts to Bedingham.
Durham’s reply got off to a rough start when Gay chopped Milnes onto his middle stump.
Lees was lbw for 31 to Ekansh, who then got Will Rhodes caught at gully by for 19 by Dudgeon.
When Graham Clark got a bottom edge to Dudgeon for five, Durham were 88 for four.
Bedingham pulled Ekansh for six and then punched Dudgeon for four through the covers to reach fifty, steering Durham to 121 for four at tea, but the light deteriorated during the interval, to the extent Kent were told they’d have to bowl spinners.
When the light improved, Robinson chased a wide one from Milnes was caught by Dudgeon at gully for 27, but rain began to fall at 5.40pm and play was abandoned with 15.3 overs remaining.
Ben Dawkins and Sam Northeast both hit centuries as Kent enjoyed a strong opening day of their Rothesay County Championship game against Durham at Beckenham, posting 385 for four.
19-year-old Dawkins hit his maiden first-class century, finishing on 180 not out, while Northeast made 141: their partnership of 303 was Kent’s highest for any wicket against Durham.
Ben Stokes dismissed Zak Crawley for 30 as both Dawkins and Northeast before reached three figures. However, they dragged themselves back into the contest with three late wickets and Ben Raine ended day one with two for 72.
Crawley struck two boundaries in the opening over after Kent chose to bat but having made 30 he then hit Stokes straight to Matthew Potts at cover.
However, Dawkins moved to fifty when he pushed Kasey Aldridge for three and Kent reached 115 for one at lunch.
The pitch wasn’t entirely lifeless, with several short-pitched deliveries flying over Durham’s wicket-keeper Ollie Robinson. Nor was it chanceless: Dawkins was on 63 when he edged Raine, but David Bedingham missed a slip catch, while Northeast was on 73 when he tried to drive Aldridge was put down by Raine at backward point.
Dawkins was the first to cash in, edging Aldridge for four through the vacant slip cordon to reach three figures and Kent were 247 for one at tea.
Northeast, who rejoined the Kent during the winter, subsequently took a single from Aldridge to bring up his first century for Kent since September 2017 when he made 110 in a draw at Chester-le-Street.
Dawkins hit Stokes through midwicket to bring up his 150, but the stand was finally ended when Northeast edged Raine to Ben McKinney at slip.
After waiting for the best part of five hours, Tawanda Muyeye nicked off to Potts and was caught by Aldridge for one, before Daniel Bell-Drummond also went for one, caught at gully by Alex Lees off Raine.
Dawkins, however, survived till stumps, alongside Chris Benjamin, who was unbeaten on six.